The Story Reading Ape provides us in his Monday Funnies with the “Halloween version”. Thanks so much for making us laugh!
Day: October 8, 2019
10 Reasons Readers Unsubscribe From Newsletters – Written By Nate Hoffelder
Have you ever wondered why people keep unsubscribing from your newsletter? Nate Hoffelder wrote an interesting blog post about it. Thanks for this very educational and helpful article, Nate! I read it carefully. It explains a lot – but it does not explain why nobody subscribes. đ (just kidding!)
If thereâs one problem that everyone with a newsletter shares, itâs not knowing why readers unsubscribe. While it is normal to lose a few subscribers every time you send a newsletter, I have been told (and can confirm from personal experience) that if you are losing more than a half of a percent of your mailing list after sending a newsletter, you have a problem.
It might be that you are emailing too often (or not often enough), or your subscribers might be getting bored with your newsletters. They might also be bothered by political rants, or by proselytizing, or if you engage in a lot of hard sell tactics.
Each former subscriber has their own reason leaving your mailing list. (Who knows, they might just be too busy to read all the mail they receive?) Itâs impossible to say why someone is losing subscribers without examining the specifics of their mailing list, but I can give you a bunch of possible causes to consider.
Back in May I asked my newsletter subscribers and authors in the FB groups SPF Community and 20Booksto50K a simply question: âWhat would make them unsubscribe from a newsletter?â
I received several hundred answers, and I collated the responses for this post.
Continue Reading Here
How Well-Intentioned Loved Ones Can Sabotage Your Writing Career – Written By Anne R. Allen
Anne R. Allen writes about a danger some of us writers are not expecting; sabotage in our own four walls. Thanks for this very informative post, Anne.
Learning to write well is tough. Getting published is tougher. And selling your published books is tougher still.
Nevertheless, we persist. Most writers feel compelled to write, and usually, nothing can stop us.
But we can be waylaid, distracted, and seriously discouraged. Some of us canât write for years because of devastating âcreativity woundsâ and body-blows to our self-esteem. Misguided and untrained beta readers and critique groups can also kill a writerâs creativity.
Others quit writing after horrific experiences with scam publishing companies and bogus agents. I have written often about the publishing scammers who lie in wait for newbie writers. Do check out my posts on scams, and always check Writer Beware. Scammers can break your heart as well as emptying your bank account.
Iâve also heard from several authors who put their writing on hiatus after sadistic troll attacks derailed a fledgling writing career. (We had some great advice on how to fight online attacks from Chris Syme last week. Attacks like this were the inspiration for my novel So Much for Buckingham, which is on sale this week.)
But sometimes the writerâs most dangerous enemies are closer to home.
Continue Reading Here
How to DIY PR for Indie Authors â Written By Helen Baggott
On ‘The Story Reading Ape’s’ blog I found the link to a fascinating and very educational article concerning self-publishing and PR for self-published writers. Thank you so much Helen Baggott!
on Self Publishing Advice:
PR can feel like a mystery to writers. Itâs done by experts and those in the field or the industry. But author member, Helen Baggott is here to remove the mystery and tell us how we can DIY PR as indie authors.
When I talk to other authors about their marketing strategy, how they plan to recoup their costs, I tell them, âNo one will knock on your door and ask if youâve written a bookâ. Authors have to reach out to readers.
Continue reading HERE
Don’t Let Your Plot Hijack Your Story – Written By Janice Hardy
Janice Hardy published an interesting blog post about plot and story not being alined in our book. Thanks a lot for that article, Janice.
The plot illustrates the story, but sometimes, it has a mind of its own and takes yo
ur novel in the wrong direction.
Itâs a common enough tale. Youâre writing away, listening to your characters and letting them run the show. Theyâre diverting a little from your outline, but thatâs okay because where theyâre going is good stuff. Or maybe youâre the kind of writer who doesnât have an outline, and youâre enjoying this unexpected path your characters have taken.
And they keep doing it.
And doing it.
And doing it.
You follow because the plot is moving and it seems like a good idea, and the words are coming fast and furious. Youâre getting a huge amount of writing done. Youâre feeling so productive!
Continue Reading Here
Dragon Knight – Written By KJ Magical Designs
Check out this awesome pre-made cover! I think it’s breathtaking and if I had only one dragon in my series I would have claimed it by now!
Check out that beautiful cover on KJ Magical Design’s website and contact them if you’re interested:
CONTINUE READING HERE
Monday chuckles
Bluebird of Bitterness provides us with her Monday-chuckles. Bluebird’s personal way of making us smile. Thanks so much for the giggles.
Do Some People Lack the Talent to be a Successful Author? – Written By Kristen Lamb
Kristen Lamb published a very interesting, fascinating and relentlessly honest blog post about a lack of talent and authors. Thanks so much for sharing your point of view with us, Kristen!
Talent is so utterly subjective. How can we know if we actually have it? Recently, I was chatting with my cousin whoâs an incredible artist.
She mentioned how, no matter how many compliments or how many sales, she canât help but feel like an imposter.
I, of course, responded that authors suffer the same malaise. Imposter syndrome is alive and well, and it doesnât matter how many books we write, the titles we earn or how many books we sell. For a lot of us? We still canât help but feel like a fraud.
That we donât actually have any talent. Oh, and that any moment someone might find out weâve fooled the world and have no talent at all.
All of this posits the eternal questionâŚ
Are there just some people who simply lack the talent to be a successful author?
Continue Reading Here
October & November 2019 Writing Submissions [Writing Contests] – Written By Rachel Poli
Rachel Poli has listed the current October/November writing contests for us. Thank you so much for your ongoing hard work for all of us, Rachel!
Here is the updated list for September & October 2019 writing submissions. I try to find submissions and contests with no fee (or on the cheaper side at least), which is surprisingly hard. As always, if you know any places that run contests and accept general submissions that are not on my list, please let me know and Iâll check it out to add it.
October 2019
Genre: Fiction
Website: Writerâs Digest
Deadline: October 14, 2019
Entry Fee: $30
Prize: First â $2,500
Genre: Nonfiction
Theme: Laughter is the Best Medicine
Website: Chicken Soup
Deadline: October 31, 2019
Entry Fee: N/A
Prize: $200
Continue Reading Here
A Pack Of Scammer Lies – Written By Victoria Strauss – Writers Beware Blog
I found this very interesting and informative blog post on the ‘Writer’s Beware Blog’, written by Victoria Strauss. Thank you so much for your tireless efforts to warn us about scams, Victoria. We really appreciate your hard work!
Posted by Victoria Strauss for Writer BewareÂŽ
How do scammers entrap unwary writers? The other day, an especially egregious example came across my desk, in the form of this “proposal” shared with me by an author who really, really wanted to believe it was real (I’ve redacted the author’s name and book title to protect their privacy).
Not to beat a horse, dead or otherwise, but if you’ll glance at the sidebar, you’ll see that Alpha Books United is on Writer Beware’s big list of Philippines-based Author Solutions copycat publishing and marketing scams. (When I got hold of this proposal, on September 26, Alpha Books’ website was working fine, but when I checked it today it refused to load. “Mr. Ken Davis”, however, has not stopped emailing and calling the author who contacted me.)
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