Indie News: Newspaper Content Brings Indie Books into the Limelight

Ever dreamed of having your self-published book reviewed by an authoritative newspaper? The Guardian is giving indies that chance.

Spotlight on the Self-Published

Working with Legend Times, The Guardian will review self-published authors in the newspaper as part of a contest for indie authors. 

You have the option of submitting one novel a year to the contest, which is held monthly. Judges include members of the Andrew Lownie Literary Agency, Lauren Parsons of Legend Press and authors Polly Courtney and Stuart Evers. The winning novel of the month will be reviewed.

The first entries for the contest began on April 8.

Writing 101: What Other Authors Do

Eyes on your own paper. It's the dire warning of teachers the world over, and it can still apply to you no matter how long you've been out of school. When you're an author, you can't worry about what other authors do. 

Finding a Market

A lot of authors have no doubt dreamed of writing the next Twilight or Hunger Games, but that's not how it works. You can't force lighting to strike, and you can't make yourself write within the confines of a specific outcome you want to achieve. In short, what I'm saying is this: you can't worry about finding a market for your books. You can't worry about what other authors are doing. 

Writing 101: Undecided

I've always been the sort of writer who has a one-track mind. Once I commit to a project, that's it. That's what I'm working on, and I'm working on it until I'm done. But lately, it hasn't been like that. I've recently found myself working on two different books at once, and I'm weirdly synced up because they're both on the same chapter right now. Have you ever been undecided while writing your books? 

One Way or Another

Focusing on a single story has always been my habit. I think about it when I'm not writing it, I worry over it when I don't really need to, I go back and reread it way too many times. But I realized, after a particularly poignant moment, that I have a habit of getting way too involved. And that's not good for me.

Writing 101: Forcing It

There are times when you need inspiration to strike, when you have to wait for the right creative mood to hit you. And then, there are times when you just have to sit down in front of the keyboard...and force it to come.

Disciplined

More than any other trait, I think writers have to be disciplined. It's incredibly difficult to sit down in front of a screen for 12 hours at a stretch, making little black characters appear on a white screen. Your family will be all around you talking and yelling and asking questions. Intriguing stuff will show up on TV, and weird questions will appear in your mind to tempt you into using Wikipedia. Twitter will beckon, emails will arrive, phones will ring and at some point you may wander off to go get a snack. Discipline is the only thing that makes it all work. But discipline isn't just about ignoring the TV show or telling your family to hush up. It needs to go much deeper than that.

Writing 101: You May Not Be Googling Enough

If you're like me, Google is your homepage. You refer to it constantly to look up words, find information...and sometimes, figure out the name of that person in that movie who's now in the TV show that's driving you crazy. But Google isn't just there to lead you on weird Wikipedia trivia hunts or help you find that particular Family Guy clip you've got to watch again. In fact, as an indie author you may not be Googling enough. 

Are You There, Google? It's Me, Jade

I use Google to take a look at maps, learn more about trees and figure out if I'm really using further the right way in that sentence. It's always open on all my devices, and I've asked it any number of insane questions. But there's something else I always do with Google, and all other indie authors should as well: I check all my titles and names. Do you? 

I Can't Believe I Forgot About Craigslist

Regular readers of the blog know that I've written posts about countless ways to market your indie titles. I've written about social media and finding book bloggers, trading reviews and using forums. And today, while doing my regular online chores, I saw something that managed to catch even me by surprise: an ad on Craigslist.

No, Not Literally

No, I haven't been living under a rock and yes, I've been well aware of Craigslist for many years now. I used it once during a brief stint where I played editor and had to hire a couple of freelance writers. I tried using it to find a cover designer for Justice, which didn't work out too well. But I never even considered using it to get reviews...until I saw someone else doing it first.

Writing 101: Misunderstood

If you're a self-published author, it's because you failed in traditional markets. If you're an indie, it means you're struggling just to get your words read (because who really wants to read an indie?). If you're not a well-known author being published by one of the Big Six, you're just not worth reading. These are just some of the misconceptions that people have about indie authors...and I'm here to debunk all of them.

Never Less Than

It has come to my attention that some people think self-publishing is some sort of last resort for authors. After years of desperate struggle and rejection, they finally turn to self-publishing because this is the only way for them to be heard. And naturally, because they are amateurs, they flood the market with substandard material. 

To play Devil's advocate, this story probably rings true for some authors and some books that are currently available at Amazon.com. But for a great many of the authors who go the indie route, it doesn't. I've found that many self-published authors are being plain misunderstood by readers, even by book bloggers. 

Writing 101: Don't Try to Do Everything

As an indie author, you will spend most of your time doing things other than writing. It sounds strange, but it's true. You will spend more time editing the book than writing it, and more time promoting it than you even want to think about. But don't try to do everything. Don't try to be on every site or promote every book on the same day. If you do, you'll find you don't have time to do anything else.

Burning Both Ends

How many times have you logged into Twitter or Facebook to check out one thing, and suddenly an hour has passed? Social media is time-consuming, just like book marketing. That's why you have to focus your marketing, because you just don't have time to do it all.