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WPNews, January 2024
The It’s a New Year Issue
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From Kathleen Kaiser, President
Many things are changing in
publishing, especially for small publishers and indie authors. Most seem to be
coming from Amazon. I have an article below about one way to avoid angst if
these changes do happen.
Another topic on Amazon is
that they are not tracking certain category sales but keeping the categories
live. It's called "ghosting." Adanna Moriarty and I had a great talk
with Dave Chesson about what he's discovered and how to avoid any problems on
our podcast's recent episode of Talking Book Publishing. If you don't know
Dave, he owns Kindlepreneur, one of the best websites for writers to learn the
ins and outs of Amazon. Click
here to listen or download at your
favorite podcast provider.
If you have a book or two and
want to sell more copies, consider joining WPN at the LA Times Festival of
Books in April. Click
here to learn more. It's 150,000+ book
lovers and the largest book festival now in America.
And if you aren't a member,
there is nothing like starting the year with the best information. Our WPN INSIDERS
REPORT, which comes out on the 15th of each month, is valuable to anyone
needing resources or keeping up with this rapidly expanding industry. It's only
for members. JOIN HERE.
Later this month, I will be on a Zoom Marketing Panel for IWOSC,
the Independent Writers of Southern California. If you’d like to watch,
register here. It’s free of IWOSC members, and $20 for non-IWSOC members. Learn more
here.
I hope you had a great
holiday season and are now ready to get published and sell books! Remember, WPN
is here to help.
Kathleen
Contact me at: kathleen@kathleenkaiser.com
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From Sandra Murphy, Editor
The holidays are over, the glitter ball has dropped, and in many areas winter has set in. Did you make resolutions for the New Year? Will you keep them? Our intentions are always good, our follow through, not so much.
Take projects one at a time. Pick one thing that you want to do, need to do, or have to do. Often postponed chores take less time and effort than the agonizing we do while postponing them. A sigh of relief follows. Treat yourself to something nice after that. You deserve it.
For me, the goal is to focus on writing projects that have gathered dust over this past year. My characters are clamoring for their stories to be told. You know how they get.
I will comply this time.
Wishing you a prosperous New Year,
Sandy, Editor, editor@writersandpublishersnetwork.com
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Reminder: We now offer a Members Only directory. The list lives behind the login page, so only other WPN members will see it.
Look for more benefits to be added in the coming months.
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Ask the Book Doctor: So What About So? by Bobbie Christmas
Q: If I could find this in CMOS, I wouldn’t be bothering you. In one of Bobbie’s reports (Highlights of Chicago Style) it says: "Chicago style does not use a comma after a brief introductory phrase, except when needed for clarity."
My 16th edition, page 311, says about the comma: "Especially in spoken contexts, it usually denotes a slight pause. Effective use of the comma involves good judgment, with ease of reading the end in view." Page 319, 6.36 says: “An introductory adverbial phrase is often set off by a comma but need not be unless misreading is likely. Shorter adverbial phrases are less likely to merit a comma than longer ones."
From these lines I surmised that really short introductory phrases, such as “So, And, But” would not need the comma unless you hear the comma when reading the sentence.
Read More...
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Send your questions to Bobbie Christmas, book editor, author of Write In Style: Use Your Computer to Improve Your Writing, and owner of Zebra Communications. Bobbie@zebraeditor.com or BZebra@aol.com. Read Bobbie’s Zebra Communications blog at https://www.zebraeditor.com/blog/.
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The Publisher’s Perspective by Jay Hartman
The blank slate.
There are few things more intimidating than a blank computer screen, pure white paper, a whiteboard begging to be written on and dry-erased, or a clean chalkboard, black, gleaming and just waiting for a piece of chalk to make that screeching noise.
Why does something that should give us positive vibes fill us with anxiety? We should be eager to fill these empty spaces with new thoughts, ideas, and grand plans. And yet so many of us get stuck, pen or marker in hand, trying to figure out what our next move is. If you’re like me, this is followed by procrastination, snacks, and a vow to tackle it tomorrow.
Read More...
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Looking to get The Publisher Perspective? Send your questions to jhartman@mistimedia.com with TPP in your subject line.
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Promo Idea You Can Use
No need to duplicate this idea in particular but it should spur creativity so you can find your own unique plan to draw attention to libraries, launch parties, or signings.
The St. Louis Public Library Is Hosting Taylor Swift Con Because Why?
They helpfully note Swift herself will not be in attendance. The Taylor Con starts off with a dance party. Following the dance, fans are asked to create a Taylor-tote, poster, fanzine, or friendship bracelet. Have your photo taken with Taylor (a cardboard cutout version, of course). There’s also a talk titled “What We Talk About When We Talk About Taylor Swift Panel and Q&A with Taylor Teachers.” The day ends with Taylor Trivia.
What does this have to do with writing, publishing, selling books? It should spark ideas for getting readers into the library and from there, reading what we write. Approach your library and see what ideas you can generate, what age group you can reach, who will want to know about your books. It might not hurt to have Cardboard Taylor on hand…https://tinyurl.com/3tp3wyx6
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Authors, you need to have the original files for your book |
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By Kathleen Kaiser
One of the biggest mistakes I've found when working with self-published authors is that they don't have the original high-resolution PDF for their book's interior or the cover artwork files.
Why, you may ask, do I need those?
Because, first, you paid to have them
designed, so they are your property. Some sleazy hybrid publishers
charge you to design the book but claim ownership of the designs. NEVER
agree to this clause.
One client of mine was told he'd have to pay three times what he paid
to have them created to get a copy of the PDF.
What if you don't want to keep working
with them? What if they aren't paying you all of your royalties? Or
they go out of business? Who is collecting the money from sales? And
where are your master
files?
Learn More...
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WPN members!
Do you have a new book coming out?
Are you a publisher opening for submissions?
Please let us know and we will share with
over 4,000 WPNews readers.
Email all news to:
editor@writersandpublishersnetwork.com
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Another way to share books. Most readers have a towering TBR (to be read) stack of books, some of us in every room, on every surface. Sadly, we can’t keep them all.
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Here’s a way to share and send books directly to troops, veterans, and families. Media mail helps keep the postage cost down. Operation Paperback has been around since 1999, has 19,000+ volunteers from all 50 states, and 15,000 books per month are shipped. A list of recipients is provided, the donor packs and ships (and pays). Read more at: https://www.operationpaperback.org/about.php
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Bits and Pieces – News You Might Have Missed |
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“Every Main Character Needs a Sidekick” by Sandra Murphy, guesting with mystery writer Debra H. Goldstein, the author of Kensington Press’s Sarah Blair mystery series.
https://www.debrahgoldstein.com/2023/11/
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Sandra’s sidekick, Ozzie the Westie Impersonator, with a tug toy (hot dogs) on his head. He’s a critic, a problem solver, and always good for a laugh.
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A new data poisoning tool lets artists fight back against generative AI
The tool, called Nightshade, messes up training data in ways that could cause serious damage to image-generating AI models by Melissa Heikkiläarchive October 23, 2023
https://tinyurl.com/bdeae2uy
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What's the Future of Books?
Amid historic disruption in the publishing industry, big questions are—rightfully—being asked. Here, experts weigh in on how books (and the ways we discover them) are going to change by Kate Dwyer November 9, 2023 Esquire magazine https://tinyurl.com/5n79wefr
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5 Tips to Keep Your Readers Happy & Wanting More
Posted by Brian Andrews on Career Authors | Nov 1, 2023
https://tinyurl.com/5n6nha2b
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Penguin Random House, authors sue to block Iowa Anti-LGBTQ Book Banning Law
https://tinyurl.com/y6hfmt7f
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Fifth Circuit hears appeal of Texas Book Rating Law https://tinyurl.com/ykh8dk2y
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Lambda Legal, ACLU sue to block Iowa Anti-LGBTQ Book Banning Law
https://tinyurl.com/bddrnv8a
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Congress introduces bill to fight book bans in schools https://tinyurl.com/yut9znzc
Florida’s Maxwell Alejandro Frost and Frederica Wilson and Maryland Rep. Jamie Raskin introduced the bill on December 5. The Fight Book Bans Act would offer school districts funding to defend against challenges to books and educational materials that’s resulted in thousands of titles being removed from school libraries.
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AAP calls Big Tech's AI arguments 'Nonsense' https://tinyurl.com/44dky6dp
The Association of American Publishers insists copyright law protects authors, publishers, and creators from unauthorized appropriation of works by AI developers to train their systems without compensating authors or receiving permission.
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If you’re self-taught on the computer and there are keys that remain a mystery, this article might help.
Finally! A Definitive List of What Those F1 – F12 Keys Do
https://tinyurl.com/29z5fwkp
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Fiction Contests
Cai Emmons Fiction Award Eligibility: All writers Prize: $5,000 + publication Entry fee: $25 Deadline: January 15, 2024
The Masters Review Short Story Award for New Writers Eligibility: Emerging writers only Prize: $3,000 + publication + agency review Entry Fee: $20 Deadline: January 28, 2024
Nonfiction Contests
Ellen Meloy Fund for Desert Writers Eligibility: Emerging, mid-career or established writers are all welcome to apply Prize: $5,000 Entry Fee: $15 Deadline: January 15, 2024
Fund for Investigative Journalism Grant Eligibility: Journalists with a letter of commitment from a publication for a specific story Prize: up to $10,000 Deadline: January 29, 2024
Poetry Contests
92Y Discovery/Joan Leiman Jacobson Poetry Contest Eligibility: Poets who have not published a full-length poetry collection Prize: $1,000 + publication Entry Fee: $15 Deadline: January 12, 2024
Colorado Prize for Poetry Eligibility: All poets Prize: $2,500 + publication Entry Fee: $28 online; $25 by mail Deadline: January 14, 2024
Tampa Review Prize for Poetry Eligibility: All poets Prize: $2,000 + publication Entry fee: $25 Deadline: January 31, 2024
Multi-Genre Contests
Iowa Review Awards Eligibility: All writers and poets Prize: $1,500 Entry Fee: $20 Deadline: January 31, 2024
Writing Fellowships & Residencies
Steinbeck Fellowship in Creative Writing Eligibility: New writers of any age and background Prize: $15,000. Residency in the San José area is expected during the academic year. Deadline: January 5, 2024
Olive B. O’Connor Fellowship in Creative Writing Eligibility: Writers working on their first book Prize: $55,500 + travel + health and life insurance Deadline: January 5, 2024
Yaddo Eligibility: Any artist, except those enrolled in full time undergrad or graduate programs Prize: 2-week to 2-month residencies Application Fee: $30 Deadline: January 10, 2024
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