A writer’s life: book fairs, conferences and networking
It was my first taste of a “real writer’s life.” It started out with Wild Deadwood Reads. I can’t think of a more appropriate name to describe this event. WDR, held in Deadwood, South Dakota, began in 2017 to connect authors with readers. This was my first time attending the multi-genre book event. Wild Deadwood […]
The value of reader reviews
Reader reviews are truly the lifeblood for authors. Whether it’s a work of fiction or nonfiction, reviews provide authors with feedback, are useful for future books, and are a gauge for the success or failure of the book. In the world of Amazon, where 80% of today’s books are sold, reader reviews are used in […]
Using accents and dialects in dialogue
In a recent author talk, one of the audience members asked me why Two Hawks spoke English with a Scottish accent. I explained that my hero needed to speak English in order to communicate with the heroine and that using a Scottish accent in dialogue seemed reasonable since his father was a Scots fur trader. […]
Book marketing strategies
There’s more to book publishing than simply writing a book. The next step is book marketing.
When the character took control
No one was more surprised than I was when my character took control of the scene in the book I’m currently writing. There I was, typing away. The scene was set. My characters were interacting, and then my heroine made an unexpected move. It sounds ridiculous, doesn’t it? I recalled webinars that discussed the possibility […]
Typos happen
Typos happen. Whether they’re grammatical errors, missing or misspelled words, typos are the bane of every writer’s existence. That’s not an over-statement. Part of the path to publishing is hiring a professional proofreader to catch those errors. But even before that step, an editor reviews and edits the manuscript for character development, copy flow, point-of-view and a […]
What I learn from book clubs
I love book clubs. Just being around people who like to read is energizing. As a member, book clubs help me explore books that I might not choose to read otherwise. Most readers have genres that they prefer or even unconsciously select. But book clubs encourage exploration, both of authors and of genres. As an […]
Will ChatGPT upend human creativity?
In preparation for this post, I asked ChatGPT to write the blog. Unfortunately, the new artificial intelligence platform (is it a platform, a software or just a fad?) is maxed out. I received this message: ChatGPT is at capacity right now And then it proceeded to write a sonnet about its status. Here’s the first stanza:Amidst the […]
Conversation with readers
Part of publishing a book is going out and talking about the book — having conversations with readers. That’s where I am in my “publishing journey” as I refer to it. I must confess that I prefer to write words on paper than speak words to groups of people. So, I ask the audience if we can […]