Author: selfpublishingadvisor

Conversations with a Self-Publishing Writer, poetry, Royalene Speaks, Uncategorized

Conversations: 4/29/2016

THE MUSIC OF WORDS part FIVE

Well, here we are—at the point where you’ve decided I will not talk about the REAL elements of poetry: forms, genre and techniques. I’m not a fan of suggesting that poets lock themselves into specific formulas. However, I do see the value of practicing these forms (within their accepted genres) to increase an individual’s personal writing voice and form. Here are brief definitions of some of the forms utilized today:

poetry

  • Ghazal: common in poetry from Arabic, Azerbaijani, Bengali, Persian, Turkish and Urdu cultures this form has from 5-15 rhyming couplets that share a refrain at the end of the second line. Each line is identical in meter.

 

  • Haiku: a very popular form of unrhymed verse containing three sections in a structured 5-7-5 pattern. This form originated in Japanese poetry and often contains a “cutting or seasoned word” at the end of the poem.
  • Ode: This form comes from ancient Greek culture, having three parts: a strophe, an antistrophe and an epode. The strophe and antistrophe often offer conflicting perspectives and the epode looks at both intending to offer a clearer perspective. Odes were often sung as creative minds attempted to influence peoples of their time.
  • Shi: the main type of classical Chinese poetry with variations of folk song, old style, and modern style each with rhyming elements. They are most often considered folk ballad poetry and delivered in song.
  • Sonnet: This is the most commonly known form of poetry in modern times. It is a “set-rhyme” containing exactly fourteen lines with a logical structure. The first four lines introduce the topic, the second four elaborates and the third puts forth a perceived problem (usually a couplet or two lines) giving a twist to the logic-lines. The very distinct rhyme pattern is: a-b-a-b-c-d-c-d-e-f-e-f-gg.
  • Tanka: widely used in today’s Japanese poetry, this form is unrhymed with five sections totaling 31 “units” structured in a 5-7-5-7-7 pattern with a shift in tone and subject between the first three lines and the last two.
  • Villanelle: This form of poetry could almost be called an American/English form because of its popularity with poets such as Dylan Thomas. It contains nineteen lines made up of five triplets with a closing quatrain. There are two refrains (attractive as a musical form), concluding with two refrains.

 

 

It is my hope that reading these short definitions will not discourage “the poet within” you. If you’re just entering the world of poetry, remember that these forms can be bent a little by the author to be useful in multiple genres that look for the unusual. These genres include: Elegy, Epic and Dramatic poetry; Light verse and Lyric verse; Narrative, Fable and Satirical poetry; Prose and Speculative poetry.

Each of these forms and genres will also contain the basic elements of writing skills such as: rhythm, meter, metrical patters, alliteration, rhyme and rhyming schemes—and—the visual form of lines and stanzas. It is up to the poet/author to intrigue reader/editors and leave them demanding MORE of your work. Let your light shine and poetry fans will snap up all your published works! ⚓︎

RoyaleneABOUT ROYALENE DOYLE: Royalene has been writing something since before kindergarten days and continues to love the process. Through her small business—DOYLE WRITING SERVICES—she brings more than 40 years of writing experience to authors who need “just a little assistance” with completing their projects. This is a nice fit as she develops these blogs for Outskirts Press (OP) a leading self-publisher, and occasionally accepts a ghostwriting project from one of their clients. Her recent book release (with OP) titled FIREPROOF PROVERBS, A Writer’s Study of Words, is already receiving excellent reviews including several professional writer’s endorsements given on the book’s back cover.  

Royalene’s writing experience grew through a wide variety of positions from Office Manager and Administrative Assistant to Teacher of Literature and Advanced Writing courses and editor/writer for an International Christian ministry. Her willingness to listen to struggling authors, learn their goals and expectations and discern their writing voice has brought many manuscripts into the published books arena.
ebooks, elizabeth speaks, in your corner, Uncategorized

In Your Corner : Debunking the Myth of Multiedition Self-Sabotage

It’s not a new idea–that adding a new edition of your book can boost your overall book sales.  But while many self-publishing authors choose to begin with an ebook edition for a variety of reasons (it’s cheaper to produce, is findable using a keyword search, and is easy to distribute and download) and are only too happy to expand into print editions when their ebooks take off … well, suffice it to say the reverse is not quite as common.  Why?

I have a one-word answer for you: stigma.  Many authors who choose to begin their self-publishing experience by going straight to print and eschewing all other options do so because they themselves have a personal preference for the printed book.  Which is lovely.  I too adore the weight of a physical copy in my hand, the almost unidentifiable smell combining paper and industrial toner!  There’s absolutely nothing wrong with preference.  However–and you knew there would be a however in here somewhere!–when authors enforce their own preferences on their readers, there’s a grave danger that they will also enforce a stigma.

And let’s face it, the stigma against ebooks is doing just fine without any help.  A seachange may be starting, but the fact remains that major news outlets like The Guardian and Publisher’s Weekly and the Wall Street Journal have all at one time or another bemoaned the “death of print” instead of lauding the ingenuity of authors who found new ways to reach their readers. And authors themselves have contributed to the stigma–Stephen King, Maurice Sendak, Sherman Alexie, Ursula K. LeGuin, and Ray Bradbury have all spoken out at one time or another against ebooks.

But here are the facts:

Releasing an ebook edition of your novel does not lead inevitably to the “death of literature.”  In fact, it helps to complement your print editions.  You as an author will be able to reach a wider audience by offering both print and ebook editions–and more importantly, your willingness to do so demonstrates a profound respect for your readers and their various needs for accessibility.

An ebook edition is a smart, affordable, effective, efficient, and respectful addition to your work.  Just as an audiobook version of your book (more on that in the future!) can help render your work accessible to a hearing-impaired reader, an ebook renders your work accessible to the visually-impaired reader, the mobile reader, the traveler, and the international reader who maybe doesn’t have access to Amazon shipping or a physical bookstore.  And maybe, just maybe, your book can reach a person who would otherwise feel alone in this world, just as I am here each week to remind you that:

You are not alone. ♣︎

ElizabethABOUT ELIZABETH JAVOR: With over 18 years of experience in sales and management, Elizabeth Javor works as the Manager of Author Services for Outskirts Press. The Author Services Department is composed of knowledgeable publishing consultants, pre-production specialists, customer service reps and book marketing specialists; together, they all focus on educating authors on the self-publishing process to help them publish the book of their dreams. Whether you are a professional looking to take your career to the next level with platform-driven non-fiction or a novelist seeking fame, fortune, and/or personal fulfillment, Elizabeth Javor can put you on the right path.
Book Marketing, Book Reviews, Kelly Speaks, Marketing Your Self-Published Book, Uncategorized

Marketing Missteps Episode 6 : Taking it Personally

We all make mistakes.  They’re unavoidable!  And this holds true for the self-publishing author’s first (or second, or third, or nth) foray into marketing: You will not do everything perfectly on the first (or second, or third, or nth) attempt, and living in fear or working under the shadow of this truth can lead to paralysis.  So how to move on into the next step of authorship without getting lost or discouraged along the way?  I always recommend an innovative–and informed–approach.  Knowing what others have done to kill their marketing campaigns can be of help.  To that end, I have been writing this series of “marketing missteps.”  To ruthlessly paraphrase Animal Farm: All mistakes are created equal, but some mistakes are more equal than others.  In other words, these mistakes are guaranteed to set you on the wrong path:

This week, I’ll be taking on perhaps the most challenging misstep of all, and its one that I myself fall prey to … regularly.

Taking it Personally

I’m not going to lie: there are times when we need to take things personally in order to keep plugging away at the writing thing, when a compliment or a piece of sound constructive criticism is exactly the right thing to move us from stasis back into action.  But knowing whose compliments and whose advice is worth listening to?  That’s the hard part.

Running your own self-publishing marketing campaign requires us to grow thick skin.  This isn’t optional–it’s mandatory.  If we want to craft successful strategies for selling our books, we have to rise above being affected by the hazy emotional mess that is the average Amazon or Goodreads book review.  And being detached?  Well, it takes practice to remain sensitive to the facts and not dip into dispassionate waters while taking the heat out of our responses to everything else.

taking it personally

My advice is this:

Save your heart and your soul for writing, and treat your marketing campaign like a business.  It might be useful to think of the aforementioned Amazon and Goodreads reviews as the literary equivalent of Yelp for restaurants: some people might “get” it, some people might not, and everyone’s writing these things from highly subjective points of view.  This is not tosay reviews aren’t important–but you should be looking at the overall metrics and working always to boost your positive review base, no matter what individual reviews say.  And yes, I’m referring to the positive reviews every bit as much as the negative ones!  There’s nothing that will sap your writing momentum as fast as an afternoon spent basking in complimentary but fundamentally useless reviews (in terms of improving your writing).  And reviews aren’t the only thing you need to approach with bloodless detachment.  You will face all kinds of rejections and snubs–just as any businessperson must.  And you will learn from them, and rise above them.  You will turn those negatives into positives with regular and conscious effort … if you remember to keep your head in the game, and your heart out of it.

Write for your life–and market for profit.  This has to be our operational principle.

 

Thank you for reading!  If you have any questions, comments, suggestions, or contributions, please use the comment field below or drop us a line at selfpublishingadvice@gmail.com.  And remember to check back each Wednesday for your weekly dose of marketing musings from one indie, hybrid, and self-published author to another. ♠

KellyABOUT KELLY SCHUKNECHT: Kelly Schuknecht is the Executive Vice President of Outskirts Press. In addition to her contributions to the Outskirts Press blog at blog.outskirtspress.com, Kelly and a group of talented marketing experts offer book marketing services, support, and products to not only published Outskirts Press authors, but to all authors and professionals who are interested in marketing their books and/or careers. Learn more about Kelly on her blog, kellyschuknecht.com. 10:00 AM
Advocacy in Self-Publishing, from the archives, Kelly Speaks, Uncategorized

From the Archives: Self-publishing vs. Independent Publishing

Welcome back to our Tuesday segment, where we’ll be revisiting some of our most popular posts from the last few years.  What’s stayed the same?  And what’s changed?  We’ll be updating you on the facts, and taking a new (and hopefully refreshing) angle on a few timeless classics of Self Publishing Advisor.

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[ Originally posted: July 28th, 2010 ]

Guest Post: The Book Doctor on Self-Publishing vs. Independent Publishing

Q: When you spoke at a conference recently, I heard you refer to self-publishing. Isn’t “independent publishing” the correct term now?

A: Yes and no. An independent publisher is a small publisher that may or may not publish the works of the owner, but it always publishes the works of other authors, as well. When you publish only your own books, you are self-publishing. I know the distinction is vague; in either case you have to set up a company and be a publisher, but an independent publishing house accepts the works of others, as well as the works of the owner.

Also, when you use a firm that helps you publish, so that you don’t have to set up your own company, you are a self-published author, as opposed to a traditionally published author.

In the end, we are simply talking semantics. If you spend any money at all toward the printing of your book, you are self-published. Being self-published used to carry a stigma, and perhaps that’s why some people don’t want to use the term, but the market has changed over the years, and people’s attitudes have changed with it. At a time when selling a book to a traditional publisher is almost impossible, yet printing your own book has become easier than ever, self-publishing has taken on a whole new character and lost much of its prior poor image. Nowadays the only stigma comes from a poorly written or unedited self-published book. If the book looks good, reads well, is thoroughly edited, and sells well, who cares who paid for the printing?

While the words of the Book Doctor remain as true in 2016 as they were in 2010, I’d like to play devil’s advocate for a moment and argue that no, we’re not just “talking semantics” when we talk about the distinction between “independent publishing” and “self-publishing”–and in part I’m inspired by yesterday’s news compendium, or more specifically, Alex Palmer’s “Indie Authors Business Guide” for Publisher’s Weekly.  A self-publishing author who does not run an indie press may or may not choose to pursue becoming a limited liability corporation (LLC), but an independent publisher has no choice in whether or not to run his or her work as a business.  (Besides, passions run hot when it comes to these distinctions, as Judith Briles of AuthorU explains at length.)

And there’s an additional wrench in the works: “independent publishing” is not the same thing as being an “indie author.”  As Joanna Penn of The Creative Penn writes, “The term ‘indie author’ has been increasingly claimed by authors who want a new label, one that does justice to the work involved.”  This isn’t a matter of semantics, but of self-identification and empowerment.

As Penn goes on to point out, the proliferation of publishing platforms and models means that there’s a lot more confusion between the clear-cut definitions that we have relied on in the past, as we did in our 2010 Book Doctor post.  “Indie” could mean someone who publishes online and cuts out the middleman entirely, someone who publishes through an indie press, someone who partners up with other self-publishing authors to create a micro-business, someone who publishes through unpaid digital platforms and relies on sponsorships and donations, and so on and so forth.

One of the things I like best about using the term “indie” is that it takes the heat out of the situation.  There’s a tendency to consider self-publishing the opposing binary or even “enemy” of traditional publishing, but the savvy author knows that it’s less about the inherent components of the model than it is about the people working within that model and how well they serve the author.  Self-publishing may be “friendlier” on the whole to its authors by design, but that does not mean every traditional publishing option is inherently evil or that every hybrid or self-publishing company treats its authors well.  Indie authors take control of their publishing experience by finding the right option and team of professionals for them, without pitching publishing models against each other in some kind of Game of Thrones death match.  Indie authors are entrepreneurs as well as consummate businessfolk, and I respect them so much!

Close up of innovate definition

Thanks for reading.  If you have any other ideas, I’d love to hear them.  Drop me a line in the comments section below and I’ll respond as quickly as I can.  ♠

KellyABOUT KELLY SCHUKNECHT: Kelly Schuknecht is the Executive Vice President of Outskirts Press. In addition to her contributions to the Outskirts Press blog at blog.outskirtspress.com, Kelly and a group of talented marketing experts offer book marketing services, support, and products to not only published Outskirts Press authors, but to all authors and professionals who are interested in marketing their books and/or careers. Learn more about Kelly on her blog, kellyschuknecht.com.
Kelly Speaks, news from the self publishing world, self publishing news, Uncategorized

Self-Publishing News: 4.25.2016

This week in the world of self-publishing:

Once upon a time, Chris-Rachael Oseland turned to self-publishing for the same reasons as many other authors: she faced a litany of rejections from the world of traditional publishing for creating work that was “too niche” in its content, and decided her work deserved to see the light of day anyway.  And what a vindication!  Unlike many other authors who find incredible success in self-publishing, Oseland has decided to stick with indie.  As Jennifer McCartney writes for Publisher’s Weekly in this April 22nd article, Oseland’s “self-published Din­ing with the Doctor: The Unauthorized Whovian Cookbook has sold more than 35,000 print copies.”  In addition, McCartney writes, Oseland “went on to publish a Hobbit-inspired cookbook (An Unexpected Cookbook) as well as one inspired by the Settlers of Catan board game (Wood for Sheep). Her books have been featured by Paste Magazine, Wired, Nerdist, and the Daily Dot.”  That’s a lot of acclaim.  But McCartney’s article isn’t just a record of Oseland’s accomplishments: it’s a record from the ever-evolving front lines of publishing, where Kickstarter and niche content is king, where readers can participate in and interact with their favorite authors’ projects from conception through funding through publication and purchase.  You might not be interested in cooking Deadpool’s chimichangas, but it’s well worth checking out McCartney’s article for its insight into what’s next for Oseland and innovative self-publishing authors at the link!

“For an aspiring scientist, being published in a creditable journal is a major step towards gaining respect in the field,” writes Jon Card in this April 21st piece for the Guardian.  “But for Mark Hahnel, founder and CEO of Figshare, this old system was drastically in need of an update. ‘The internet was built for sharing academic data but the way scientific papers are published had hardly changed since the early days of the printing press,’ he says.”  But Hahnel, writes Card, was able to dream up and bring to fruition a plan for mixing things up–and providing an innovative new platform for scientists and college students in the sciences to publish, share, and access scientific documents without having to cowtow to the traditional publishing rigamarole.  Inspired by websites like Github and Flickr, Hahnel created Figshare to be a multimodal platform, friendly to various forms of non-written media including videos and audio files, as well as intuitive to use and capable of adapting to the ever-changing landscape of the internet.  Broken links?  Not a problem, according to Card.  Figshare has code that will take care of those so that the article’s author doesn’t have to.  “But the most important aspect of Figshare,” writes Card, “is that it has created a model that disrupts the current method, where universities pay publishers to see the work that they have created.”  Food for thought, right?  And there’s a lot more to chew on in the original article, which you can find here.

“With the recent end of tax season, many self-published authors have likely done some thinking about whether they could be saving more money or better protecting themselves from IRS scrutiny,” begins Alex Palmer’s April 22nd article for Publisher’s Weekly.  And according to Palmer, “becoming a limited liability company (LLC) or Subchapter S corporation (S corp) can provide distinct tax benefits, but can carry added costs and potential inconvenience.”  Palmer goes on to analyze several pertinent elements of such a decision at length, including tax advantages (and disadvantages) as well as the effect it can have on an author’s “legitimacy” in the eyes of third-party businesses (such as those selling ISBNs) or in a courtroom.  Palmer breaks down the three major types of business entities open to self-publishing authors: sole proprietorships, limited liability companies, and subchapter S corporations.  His article provides a balanced perspective on both the pros and cons of each, and altogether makes for a great starting point for those interested in taking the plunge but who are looking for a few of the basic facts, carefully considered.  You can find the whole of Palmer’s business guide for indie authors at the link.

spa-news

As a self-publishing author, you may find it helpful to stay up-to-date on the trends and news related to the self-publishing industry.This will help you make informed decisions before, during and after the self-publishing process, which will lead to a greater self-publishing experience. To help you stay current on self-publishing topics, simply visit our blog every Monday to find out the hottest news. If you have other big news to share, please comment below.

KellyABOUT KELLY SCHUKNECHT: Kelly Schuknecht is the Executive Vice President of Outskirts Press. In addition to her contributions to the Outskirts Press blog at blog.outskirtspress.com, Kelly and a group of talented marketing experts offer book marketing services, support, and products to not only published Outskirts Press authors, but to all authors and professionals who are interested in marketing their books and/or careers. Learn more about Kelly on her blog, kellyschuknecht.com.