EBook Theft - 5 Easy Steps to Help Nail Your Pirate

I'd say happy Friday, but this issue is a serious one, and I need you all to pay attention. I need you all to protect your work. I'm gonna give you some background as to why I'm writing this, then we'll get into how to put it into action.

Twice over the last three days (yes, TWICE), I've seen authors who either have had a book up on a pirate site before release date, or had their manuscript published by someone else using the author's name before release date on one site or another.

Just... NO.

This angers me in more ways than I can count. That author, who spent God only knows how many hours and dollars to produce a book, was ripped off.

But here's the best worst part:
Those authors had only sent the book to their ARC reviewers and/or beta readers. People believed to be trustworthy.

As an author, you don't know who to trust. Let's just be honest about it. I like to believe in the good in people, but that shouldn't stop any of us from covering our own butts.

But there are a couple of ways to cover your butt and find out who's stealing your work.

Best part about this: DO NOT TELL THEM WHAT YOU'VE DONE. When they pirate your work, you'll know exactly who to go after.

Here are two methods:
#1: ONLY send out PDFs, and password protect them with the reviewer/beta-readers' names.

1. Open in Adobe.
2. Click on options.
3. Choose to password protect.
4. Save.

#1 is the easiest option, but also the least secure. There are ways around that password.

#2: Change certain lines in your manuscript. Create an Excel spreadsheet with the line you changed and the reviewer/beta-reader's name.

1. Open your MS.
2. Choose a random line.
3. Change the wording, delete the sentence, or move it to a different part of the paragraph.
4. Make the note in Excel.
5. Save the manuscript with a number: _1, _2, _3... you get the idea (so you can keep up with which one goes out to whom).

If you find the book on a pirate site or seller site, go download it.

Even if they remove the _number, you can do a quick check to see which line was changed.

#2 is my favorite option, because they won't know what you did unless you tell them.

I do hope every author reads this, implements it, and shares the post.

I also hope every slimy scumbag book pirate out there is cringing in FEAR. You WILL be found. Authors WILL prosecute you. And you won't even know what hit you.

May you be infested with a billion superpowered fleas on your body and your arms be too short to reach your butt.


AUTHORS: If you need help password protecting your manuscript (if you use option 1) contact me, and I'll help you.

This has GOT to stop.

Until next time,

Jo

Creating Your Own Blog Tour - Step Two - Creating Promotional Materials and HTML

Happy Thursday, good people of the blogosphere! Woohoo! Tomorrow is Friday! My excitement cannot be contained. If you were with me on Tuesday, you got the first taste of this little series on blog tours. Today is all about the graphics and the HTML, baby! I'll give you a list of posts with links, and we'll move on to the awesome stuff. Grab those pens and notebooks and let's get going!

In this series:
How to Sign up Bloggers
Creating Promotional Materials and HTML
Finding Reviewers
Creating a Thunderclap Campaign
Throwing a Facebook Launch Party

I'll update the links on all the posts each day so you can find your way around. Time for the gravy!

First of all, if you don't have a way to create teaser images, you'll need to get one. Many, many people just use a book cover, and that's fine and dandy. But, if you want to look a little snazzier, here are a couple of tools you can use:

FREE
Gimp (there's a learning curve. Tutorials can be found here -- I also suggest downloading directly)
PicMonkey (the ever awesome Sarra Cannon has a tutorial on how to use it here)
Tagxedo - Word Cloud Maker
Canva

PAID
Adobe Photoshop (there's a learning curve here, too)

Gimp is close a close sister to Photoshop, so I'll give you a little walkthrough here in a minute. Right now, you need to go grab a photo to use. Please don't use photographs illegally! There are a couple of great sites with FREE public use images, and a couple that aren't too expensive to purchase digital rights to. Please, don't get you or your bloggers sued. Here's a list:

FREE
Free Use Photos on Flickr
Morguefile
Free for Commercial Use

PAID
Dreamstime
123rf
RedBubble
Bigstock
Dollar Photo Club

Remember, when buying or downloading an image for a teaser, you usually want the smaller version so it's not a webspace/loadtime hog.

Now you may want to get a new font that fits the look and feel of your book, yeah? Here are some free font sites (please look at the licensing on EACH font you plan to use):

Dafont
Fontsquirrel (these are 100% free for commercial use)

Of course, free fonts come with their own issues (like not being very clean), but I'm trying to do this on a budget here. If you think you may want to purchase a font, do a search for buy fonts. You'll be overwhelmed quickly.

Now, let's get into creation! I'm gonna use a teaser I already created, but my screen will look a little different because I'm in Photoshop.

Be sure you've installed any fonts you downloaded before you begin, and your images are somewhere you can locate them quickly.

Open Gimp and choose file--open.

Find your image and open it.

Look for a good place to put the text. I darkened the bottom a little with the burn tool.

Select the type tool and choose your font, then set the color.

Click anywhere on the image (you can drag the type once you add it), and type in your text.

Position the text and add some little colored bits to make some of the words stand out (play with it--don't be skeered)!

Add the book title somewhere!

Save that puppy in a folder titled "blogtour_titleofbook_documents" and name it "titleofbook_tourpackage_teaserimage"

You're ready to rock and roll!

Now, some people will want plain text while others want HTML. This is easy to do! Follow these steps:

• Type out your entire text in a new blog post (leave out links for now).
• Hit Ctrl+a, then Ctrl+c.
• Open a notepad or Word document.
• Hit Ctrl+v.
• Type in your links where they go.
• Save the text document in your tour folder as "titleofbook_tourpackage_plaintext" and close it.
• Add your images (book cover and teaser you just created) and your hyperlinks to your blog post.
• If you're using Blogger, click the HTML button on the top, left-hand side.
• Hit Ctrl+a, then Ctrl+c.
• Open a NEW Word or notepad document.
• Hit Ctrl+v.
• Save it in your tour folder as "titleofbook_tourpackage_HTML" and close it.

You're all done! Now you can send your package to the bloggers, and they can create magic.

How easy was that?

Don't worry, I know it seems like a lot right now, but soon you'll be an old hand at this. Tomorrow I'll go into how to find reviewers for your book.

Was this helpful? What didn't you already know?

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Creating Your Own Blog Tour - Step One - Signing up Bloggers

Happy Tuesday, everyone! Today, I'm talking about how to create your own blog tour. This will be a series of posts that will include how to sign up bloggers (today), how to create your promo materials (including HTML posts), how to find reviewers, how to create a Thunderclap campaign, and how to throw a Facebook launch party. If you've ever wanted (or needed) to do some (or all) of the things yourself, strap in, grab a pen and a notebook, and let's get going!

In this series:
How to Sign up Bloggers
Creating Promotional Materials and HTML
Finding Reviewers
Creating a Thunderclap Campaign
Throwing a Facebook Launch Party

If you all remember my post a while back about blog tour companies, you'll know why I'm about to tell you how to set up your own. It takes a lot more work from you to do it yourself, but that doesn't mean it's impossible.

To start off, you need to head over to The Paisley Reader and learn how to set up a Google Form. Yes, it's about pre-orders, but it all works the same way, so it's relevant.

Here's something to think about: What kind of blog tour do you want to do? Options include:

• Cover Reveals
• Book Reviews
• Promo Blast
• Release Day Blast
• Author Interviews
• Meet the Character(s)
• Excerpt Blast
• Combo of Above

There are also things you can offer the blog's followers to increase signups. Maybe you'd like to give away a copy of your book or a gift card (or both). Yes, those things matter on two fronts!

One: You offer something to the bloggers for agreeing to handle your content.
Two: You offer value to the readers of the blog(s) for checking out your stuff.

Remember the rule of a great giveaway: What does everyone need or want?

Go with that and your click rate will increase tenfold.

You need to start this process a good two weeks ahead of time unless you want reviews. If you're doing a review tour, you'll want to start a month out.

So, decide if you want to have an enticement, and go create your form now. Once you're done, come back and we'll go into where to post the signup link.

Questions that should be on your form:

• Name
• Blog or other URL where you plan to share
• E-mail address
• Date you can post/share (you usually have dates in mind, checkboxes matter here).
• PLAIN TEXT OR HTML. We'll get into why this matters in the next post. 

Ready? Let's continue.

Places to ask folks to sign up:

• Street Team - If you have a street team (those folks who tirelessly promote your books everywhere), you'll want to start there. After all, they're already fans of your work and have agreed to share.
• Facebook Author Groups - Chances are, you're a member of an author group where writers of your genre go to collaborate. Many authors have a blog, and many of them will be willing to share your content with a copy/paste option.
• Facebook Reader Groups - Again, chances are, you're a member of a reader group where readers of your genre hang out. With an incentive, they'll likely sign up, too!
• Goodreads Groups - Authors or readers, this is a great place to increase signups!

Good rule of thumb: Don't be annoying! Post once and leave it alone.

Plan to take responses for at least a week (include a weekend). Now, in your Drive, you'll have a "responses" document that'll give you the hot info! If you want, print it out once you're done signing people up and have turned the form off.

You're all set! Hold on to that piece of paper or document in Drive so you can follow along with the rest of the series. This is just the beginning, but once you do it a couple of times, you'll be an old hat.

What do you think? Helpful? Anything not in the lineup that you'd like to see added?

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Synopsis vs Blurb

Happy Thursday, beautiful readers of my blog! Today we're gonna go over a couple of words and what they mean. I'll be focusing on the words synopsis and blurb and what each means. Grab those pens and notebooks and let's get going!

The definitions!

Synopsis:
A brief summary or general survey of something.
An outline of the plot of a book, play, movie, or episode of a television show. 

Blurb:
A short description of a book, movie, or other product written for promotional purposes and appearing on the cover of a book or in an advertisement.

When you write your query letters, most agents want a summary or synopsis that includes spoilers (the whole plot in a few lines).

However, you don't want those spoilers in the promotional material, so you use the synopsis to create a compelling blurb (which appears on the back cover of your novel), leaving out the sensitive parts.

In addition, a blurb can be a short snippet from a review that entices readers to pick up your work.

So, to break it down in layman's terms:

• A synopsis is a summary that can contain spoilers.
• A blurb is any promotional copy that hooks readers.

Does that make it easier to understand?

When you attend something like C. J. Redwine's Query Letter workshop, you'll learn to craft a compelling synopsis of your novel for your query letters. From there, your blurbs will grow wings. If you want to know a little more about the workshop, I discuss the finer points with C. J. here.

Yes, she'll have a workshop at utopYA Con 2015, but she also offers them online.

It's worth looking into for the blurb writing ability it'll surely give you. Even if you don't want an agent, selling your book is important, right?

What do you think? Were you aware of these differences?

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Publishing News Hubs

Happy Tuesday, good people of the blogosphere! I'm stepping outside the box a little today and giving you all some insight to where people go to find their publishing news. Perhaps you'll want to check them out! Grab your pens and notebooks and let's get going!

I got the following numbers by running a little poll on Facebook. Sixteen people answered (myself included), so the data isn't great, but it's something to go on. These results might surprise you.

First and foremost, with a whopping twelve votes:

Now, this isn't limited to the newsfeed, though that was specified by one person. It's author groups, pages, and whatnot that top the list.

Second, we have printed or digital publications such as:

InD'tale Magazine (1)
Publisher's Weekly (2)
USA Today BOOKS section/Thursday edition (1)
Writer's Digest (2)
The Writer magazine (1)
Digital Book World (1)

Amazon Newsletter (1)
Galleycat (1)

Coming in third, there's blog subscriptions.

Five people said they get their publishing news from blogs they found on Google, subscriptions, or the ones on popular sites like Writer's Digest.com.

With two votes each, e-mail and Twitter come in fourth.

Lastly, there were three items with singular votes:

word-of-mouth
forums like Absolutewrite
Createspace's page

So, what does this tell you?

For me, it says I might be marketing wrong. I do plenty on Facebook, but I need to branch out into printed publications.

Where do you get your publishing news? Are these numbers a surprise?

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

New Release - Crazy Love

Happy Valentine's Day, good people of the blogosphere! Today, I'm so excited to be sharing this awesome new release from Casey L. Bond with you all. EEK! Grab a cuppa and get comfy. Let's get going!

Crazy Love is a new adult romance with a dystopian vibe.

BLURB: 

Shelby Case avoids town and all the people in it. She can't stand the whispers behind covered lips, the judgmental stares. People say she's crazy, that she lost her mind when she lost her husband. The Second U.S. Civil War has left widows and widowers scattered across the land. Shelby's just learned to cope. She's taught herself the fine art of self-preservation along with the skills to survive. When the figment of her imagination, the man who's haunted her days and nights for the past two years, shows up on her doorstep, Shelby wonders if all of the whispers are true.

 Book Trailer

 

BUY NOW

 

   
Crazy Love isn’t erotica. There’s no mention of a red room of pain anywhere within its pages, but….there’s romance, a lil hotness, a pinch of crazy and a lot of love.

Author Bio

 

 Casey L. Bond resides in Milton, West Virginia with her husband Elton and their two beautiful daughters, Juliet and Eris. When she’s not busy being a domestic goddess and chasing her baby girls, she loves to write young adult and new adult fiction. Bond graduated from Hurricane High School in 1999. In 2003, she graduated Magna Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Arts degree from Marshall University in the field of Criminal Justice.

Available or Soon-To-Be Released Books:
Winter Shadows 
Pariah, Book 1 in The New Covenant Series  
Paradox, Book 2, The New Covenant Series
Devil Creek
Shady Bay 
Reap, Book 1 in The Harvest Saga
Resist, Book 2 in The Harvest Saga  
Reclaim, Book 3 in The Harvest Saga
Sin (Serial Series)
Light in the Darkness (YA Anthology)
Fractured Glass (Novel Anthology)
Crazy Love  
Water Witch Dark Bishop (Serial Series)

What do you think? Gonna go grab one?

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Indie Book Quality

Happy Tuesday, good people of the blogosphere! Today is a post about something I've noticed has changed over the last twelve months. No huge advice, nothing to shake a stick at, but something I think you all need to hear. Grab your coffee and a comfy chair and let's get going!

If you happened to see the 12 Days of Review Requests event finale this past Saturday, you'll know there were well over twelve books chosen for review in 2015. I started out the event with the resolute promise I wouldn't go over my twelve book allotment. But, that was short lived.

You see, the samples I was downloading from Amazon were of better quality than many of the ones from books pitched in last year's event. Last year, I believe I went over my allotment by just two. Heck, it might've been just one. My memory fails in this matter.

This year was different. It was overwhelmingly amazing. It seemed each and every book I opened, I had a hard time releasing before I got to the last page. Now, you may think this is no big deal. I beg to differ. What this means is: Indie authors are getting more serious about their craft.

No longer are we seeing the author with only one book in them slapping words on a page and clicking publish. There's an upswing in the care and diligence being taken before a book is put on the market. It may be because of the particular authors who graced me with their presence this year, but it may be that the market is weeding out the, for lack of a better word, crap. Of course, I could be completely wrong and it may just be that those who were publishing before, have realized the need for an editor.

Don't mistake my words, there's still badly written books out there. But I think the sheer volume of it is decreasing by the day. No sales make the author who didn't take the proper time to edit give up more quickly.

Mark Coker says self-published titles are decreasing in volume. I think it's the folks who thought self-publishing would lead to quick bucks leaping off the boat in droves.

For those of you still on board, writing, publishing, and editing, you're to be commended. Let me be the first to say:

GREAT JOB!

I look forward to seeing what you all accomplish with another eleven months!

If you're a book reviewer, do you see the change in the quality of novels? If you're an author, do you find you're taking more time between writing and publishing?

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Kindle Scout - The Contract

Happy Tuesday, everyone! I know I missed my post yesterday. Don't judge. *sticks out tongue* But, I promise to more than make up for it today. How? Well, I'm gonna break down the Kindle Scout contract for you all. I have no pony in this show, so this is literally going to be a breakdown of legalese (I provided links to sources). Well informed is always the way to be! Okay, grab a cup of coffee because this post is gonna be long. Let's get going!

*****DISCLAIMER: I AM NOT AN ATTORNEY! AS ALWAYS, IF YOU HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT ANYTHING YOU'RE SIGNING, CONSULT A LICENSED LAWYER*****

This is a layman interpretation of the contract.

First off, you can find the agreement here.

Go read it before you begin.

Now, this contract (because that's what it is and why you have to be 18+) has two parts: Submission and Publishing Terms. I'll break it down by section. Items in bold are ones to pay close attention to (I'll explain at the end). Remember, everything in the Publishing Terms section goes into effect the day your work is selected. Any time referenced is measured by that date.

Let's start with Submission.

1 - ELIGIBILITY - ACCOUNT

• 1.1 - This is all about saying you're 18 or up, have all copyrights, and are able to enter into a legally binding contract.
• 1.2 - You have an Amazon account and are yourself (not using someone else's ID).

2 - SUBMISSION AND REVIEW - Your materials will be referred to as "Submission Materials" this term includes: Manuscript, Cover Art, Your Name, Bio, and anything else you submit. It can't have been for sale previously. They can reject you for no reason.
3 - EXCLUSIVITY PERIOD - They own all of the above for no less than 45 days. If you're selected, the second part of the contract becomes effective immediately (no signing required) upon notification.
4 - YOUR SUBMISSION - Your work is theirs to do with as they please concerning sharing (not changes). You may offer excerpts for free on blogs and such, but can't sell any part of your work. If you want your work removed after (and weren't chosen), you must submit the request in writing.

Now, on to Publishing Terms.

5 - RIGHTS - All of the company and their affiliates have rights to your work that you can't break out of (that's what irrevocable means). They may shorten the work, edit the work, or add your work to a collection of other works at their choosing. This does not (according to section 7, allow them to perform edits without your permission).
6 - REVERSION - (broken down into 6 sections)

• 6.1 - These terms auto-renew every five years (from selection date) that you don't make at least 25k (that's at least 5k per year). You can request your rights back in writing if you don't make that amount.
• 6.2 - You may request, in writing, to get your rights back under the following circumstances:
• 6.2.1 - Your work was not made available for sale within six months.
• 6.2.2 - If you don't make at least $500 in the second 12 months of the first two years.
• 6.2.3 - If the audio version hasn't been made available within 2 years.
• 6.2.4 - If the work isn't available in a specific language (outlined in the contract), you can have the rights to the work in that language back (remember, this must be done in writing).
• 6.3 - Any reversion (getting your book back) will depend on who else has rights (they get to keep those rights if the agreement was made before you get your book back). All shares those entities were entitled to stay in place. If you get your book back via one of the stipulations above, you get to keep your advance ($1500 is paid to you when you're selected).

7 -  PUBLICATION - You have 30 days to make revisions. If you don't turn in revisions, they have the right to use the original submission. They won't make material changes without your permission.
8 - ADVANCE, PRICING, ROYALTIES, PAYMENT

• 8.1 - Your $1500 advance is paid within 30 days of the date they get your final work and payee info, and is considered a royalty payout. This means the first $1500 your book makes goes back to the publisher.
• 8.2 - They set the price of the work, and own all customer data.
• 8.3 - They'll pay you royalties as follows (Net Revenue means how much they actually make from each sale and does not include promotional copies, samples, or excerpts, and subtracts delivery costs, returns, and taxes):

EBook = 50% of net revenue

Audio = 25% of net revenue

Translated EBook = 20% of net revenue

• 8.4 - 75% of net revenue on sub-licensed translated versions (less above subtractions and fees), 50% of all other sub-licensed sales.
• 8.5 - You'll get a monthly sales report. Payouts are 60 days past the end of the month. If it's a third-party sale, you get the payout 60 days after they receive payment.
• 8.6 - They can withhold payment of royalties, offset against future royalties, or require you to pay them back money (as described below). This does not limit the ways in which they're allowed to withhold payment.
• 8.6.1 - If there are returns after a payment is made, they can withhold payment in the future or require you to pay them back.
• 8.6.2 - If a third party claims you violated rights by claiming part of your work, they have the right to not pay you anything further and can make you repay them.
• 8.7 - You're responsible for your taxes. They'll pay theirs and will provide you with any documentation you may need to pay yours.

9 - COPYRIGHT, RIGHTS PROTECTION - You appoint them as your attorney-in-fact to file copyright claims with the government. They have the right to take someone to court, and you agree to help them (at their expense).
10 - PROMOTION - They get to determine how to promote your work. You may use 10% of the work to promote yourself on blogs or websites, but can't use their name unless it's on the cover.
11 - REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES - You agree that the work is original and you have the right to sign it all over. You agree there is no libel (harmful statements about anyone), and your work doesn't break any kind of laws. You've never sold the work before, and anything you say is true, is. Your work won't bring harm to the user.
12 - YOUR INDEMNITIES - You agree not to sue them for any perceived loss. They can sue you for not upholding the agreement.
13 - NO OBLIGATION TO MAKE OR SELL - TERMINATION BY THEM - They don't have to sell your work and have the right to stop doing so at any time without telling you. They can cancel the contract with written (e-mail is fine) notification if you breach your contract per item 11 or if you fail to uphold your end of the agreement.
14 - LIMITATION OF LIABILITY - They aren't responsible for losses, damages, or theft, in any way (verbatim: WE SPECIFICALLY DISCLAIM). All they're responsible for are your payments.
15 - EXECUTION OF FURTHER AGREEMENTS AND DOCUMENTS - They may need physically signed documents from you. If you don't provide them within 30 days per their instructions, you give them the right to sign for you and it's all legally binding.
16 - DISPUTES - You agree not to go to court if you have any kind of dispute. You'll use binding arbitration instead (definition: a neutral third party makes the final decision - reference here). You must follow directions listed in this section to make a claim. You agree not to join a class-action (more than one person) suit. You may take them to court over infringement claims, and they may do the same to you.
17 - APPLICABLE LAW - This is all legal according to this law: Federal Arbitration Act (Wiki link).
18 - GENERAL PROVISIONS

• 18.1 - All notices must be given in writing. Effective date is sent date or postmarked date (this includes a provision for e-mails).
• 18.2 - This agreement comes before any other agreements made.
• 18.3 - No modifications may be made unless done in writing and agreed to by everyone.
• 18.4 - This agreement doesn't mean you're partners or are in a joint venture. You can't transfer it, and neither can they. It's enforceable by your successors or assignees.
• 18.5 - If either party doesn't enforce part of the agreement, it doesn't mean they can't at a later date. If any ruling in court says any part of the agreement can't be enforced, it doesn't have any effect on the rest of the agreement. You won't assume things because they're the ones that wrote the agreement.
• 18.6 - The following sections will survive the termination of the agreement (those are the ones in bold): Sections 4, 8, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, and 18.

So, now you can make a decision.

Again, if you have any questions, I urge you to print out the agreement and take it to an attorney for further clarification. It's pretty straightforward, in my opinion.

I love contracts. I think they exist to protect both parties. If you're working with someone who doesn't require one, you need to be asking why.

What do you think? Remember, PLAY NICE!

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Being Indie

Happy Friday, everyone! Today, I'm gonna talk about something a very dear friend of mine brought up yesterday. I'm hoping it'll give everyone something to think about over the weekend. It's all about being an Indie author and why it doesn't make us crap or mean we're not awesome. So, sit back, relax, and let's get going.

Now, this conversation happened on Facebook, and many authors chimed in to say why they love being Indie (self) published.

I'm gonna start with a paraphrase of the original situation (kindly keep in mind the original poster was only seventeen when she published her first book):

She was sitting and talking with some of her college friends, and they were discussing being traditionally published. Someone mentioned that if you aren't with a big six house, you must not be a good writer (validation and all that). Because of this, my friend began to doubt her Indie ways and wonder if she was selling herself short.

Again, that's a short version of the situation with the same outcome and setting.

So, she asked: "Why do you self-publish? Am I selling myself short?"

Overwhelmingly, the responses were more about the community as a whole, maintaining control over one's work from soup to nuts, and keeping more of the profits from sales. There were also some most excellent points made. Some of the authors shared horror stories from friends who signed with publishers, some folks talked about the lack of publicity by presses both large and small, and others pointed out the aspects of film and big actors in crappy movies.

Everything kinda clicked together, and an epiphany hit me right between the eyes.

Know what I realized?

Indie isn't just about self-publishing.

There. I said it.

Allow me to explain. *grin*

Indie is a badge we wear on our chests with pride. When someone comes at one of us, for some reason or another, we go a little bananas. We're fiercely loyal to the title, love our brethren, and dare anyone to challenge our dreams. Because we're living those dreams. Each and every day, we get out of bed to do something we love. We set our own deadlines, work with editors we choose, and hire cover artists we know will do our work proud.

We have an amazing community around us that's a little like a family. People who get that we're a little strange, introverted, and hermit-like.

And they're okay with it.

As a matter of fact, they embrace us for our differences.

But wait! There's more!

As Indies, we get to know our book bloggers. They aren't just blurry faces in a sea of reviewers. They're a lot like us. Every single one of them has a passion that can't be squelched. Their passion is reading. Books. Literature. And we have the unique market insight to what those people are looking for. It's right there at our fingertips. All we have to do is nurture the connection and envelop them in the fold. They become part of the family and are celebrated.

Only Indies can put out a call to arms and have masses of others knocking over little old ladies with purses to rush to our aid (politely, of course).

Sometimes, an Indie will behave badly and get into a situation that's public and disgraceful.

But the community will punish that author so others don't have to. There's really no need for the public to go crazy and berate the person acting up. We do it for you. In that way, we're a lot like family.

Your mother doesn't hold her tongue when you screw up. Guess what? Neither do your peers. We're not afraid to tell you how wrong you are or how ashamed we are of your behavior. But it's done with the understanding that you're shaming the name we've worked so hard to build up.

Bad review? Someone will listen to you rant or give you a shoulder to cry on.

Writer's block? There are masses willing to talk you out of that corner of fear.

Struggling with a storyline? Ask. Someone will have a great piece of advice.

Got a huge deal? Your peers are gonna celebrate and pop champagne in your honor. Why? Because you'll always be an Indie.

So, yeah, Indie isn't just about self-publishing. It's about community, support, and family.

It's a way of life that lodges itself in your heart and refuses to let you go. Even when you push us away, we're there if you need us later.

Indie is in your blood.

You have been assimilated.

So, the next time someone asks you why you're Indie, the simple answer is:

"Because it's the only way to go."

What's your favorite thing about being Indie?

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Marketing Advice via Bella Roccaforte

Happy Thursday, good people of the blogosphere! Today, I'm continuing my post about what I learned from UtopYA Con 2014. I started it yesterday, but I'm interviewing for new editors over at INDIE Books Gone Wild and it's time-consuming. Apologies! First, a little bit of information about how I met Bella Roccaforte and what I learned from her. Put down your coffee (Gasp! Did I just say that?), grab your pens and notebooks, and let's get going; because this is going to be epic.

I met Bella at UtopYA Con and we quickly realized we're from the same area in Georgia (North Atlanta). Because I am who I am, I talked about everything marketing. Getting off the elevator, she turns and says, "You should go to the Amazon marketing panel tomorrow. I'll be there."

After all she told me over the previous hour, I would've broken an ankle to get to that panel. So, I went. It wasn't long before Bella found herself ushered to the front table by the moderator.

Things I learned:

• Stay off your book's Amazon splash page. Every click that doesn't equal a sale, gets put into the algorithms (not in a good way).
• Don't make the first book in a series free until you've written at least three. This gives you a loss-leader that starts your sales funnel.
• Keywords matter. Don't hunt for your Amazon keywords in Google (not the same search engine, ya know?).

Pretty cool, right?

Now, most Indie authors have day jobs or other things they do besides writing. Bella happens to be an SEO analyst. After the con was over, she shared the following post with us:

Links that Every Indie Author Should Know

You must go check out that post. You can thank me later.

What was the last thing you learned from someone when you weren't intending to?

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Call Off the Search

Call Off The Search

(A Novel of Spiritual Fantasy, Bi-sexual Romance) (The Comyenti Series Book 1)

$1.90 Amazon

Synopsis: The planet Bhan. For millennia, humanity has persecuted the beautiful and mysterious human-looking comyentis with a deep set envy and hatred; driving them from their lands; murdering and enslaving them wherever they find them. Why? Comyentis have powers that humans can only dream of. They can merge their minds with animals and use their abilities for the greater good. However they had one weakness that led to their downfall. 

Now, Sula, one of the last of her great and noble line, has been fleeing for her life, living in hiding for too long. With not just her own life but her whole species’ cupped precariously within her hands Sula is running out of time... 
As loneliness and alienation slowly engulfs her, a young attractive human steps forth and reaches out to her... 

Should Sula, who is after all half human, trust him? Can she afford not to? Will she be able to overcome her aversion to humans to save her species from extinction? 

Read "Call Off The Search", book 1 and cling to Sula as she fights for everything she holds dear: her husband, her female lover, her child, her hopes and her freedom. 

$1.90 Amazon

Meet Natasja

Mrs Hellenthal is residing in the UK, with her partner, two small children, two small dogs and a cat who all follow her around the house at the same time.
She is an eco-warrior, animal lover, vegan and her hobbies include outdoor activities such as hiking, wild camping, swimming and snowboarding. She grows her own vegetables and loves to get her hands dirty in the garden. If there is any time left she loves to write speculative fiction that entertains people but at the same time makes them think. Her work has been described as 'thought-provoking'.

'The Queen's Curse' was her debut novel and has received some great reviews.
It's a heroic Spiritual Fantasy novel in the old tradition, yet with original and surprising elements. It attracts attention from a wide range of people, both straight and gay as it deals with many issue's such as: justice/injustice, power, lesbian romance, freedom,adventure, magic, immortality, intrigue, soul searching, love, life, loss, near death experience and sword and sorcery.
In this book the author explores more than the ancient battle between good and evil so common in Fantasy literature. What is evil and how does someone become bad? Available for Kindle and in Paperback.

In her writing she deals with big psychological and ethical themes and struggles of life such as death, love and loss and tries to build strong characters as realistic as possible, for even though the genre is Fantasy she wants people to feel connected with her heroes and villains as they would with their real life people.

Mrs Hellenthal is influenced by writers such as Marion Zimmer Bradley and Tanith Lee, Kahlil Gibran and Hermann Hesse.

She is currently working on Book 2 in the Epic Fantasy series, The Comyenti Saga,'Children Of The Sun' which will be released Summer 2014!

Book 1 in the series, 'Call Off The Search' was published on the 26th of December 2013 and is available both for Kindle and in Paperback.

'Chained Freedom', a stand alone fairy-tale for adults but part of the Comyenti Series, was released in February 2014.

Please like and share her facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/pages/Natasja-Hellenthal

Feel free to leave an honest review and rating if you enjoy her books.

For the latest news and updates follow her blog on http://natasjahellenthal.wordpress.com or Twitter on @natasjahellenth

I hope you all get a chance to check out the book!

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Revolution Z

Revolution Z

by GB Banks and Blaine Hislop

Tour by www.facebook.com/nkauthorservices

$2.99 Amazon

THE REVOLUTION IS COMING...
WORLD WAR Z MEETS OLYMPUS HAS FALLEN

He was the first President of the United States
Now he may also be the last...

When the resurrected general George Washington discovers the corruption now ruling the US government, he vows to do something about it. So President Washington wages war on the nation's capitol...with an army of zombie soldiers at his back.

GB Banks is a sufferer of Osteogenesis Imperfecta, also known as "Brittle Bone Disease", and has been wheelchair- and home-bound and cared for by his parents for all of his 48-years. But through the power of his imagination, he has been able to escape to far-off lands and go on magical adventures, and now he hopes to use that very same ability to better his life, to give back to his parents for everything they have done for him throughout his life, and to free himself of the fear of being left alone and placed into a nursing home when they are gone. He has published several works in small publications over the last few years, but his dream is to become a full-time, financially successful author so that he can finally live a more independent life and be able to travel to see the numerous places that he has only been able to explore in his fantasies.

Among Banks' works are the novel "Three Hours to the Apocalypse" and the series WALKERS, which are stories based in the universe of The Walking Dead. His latest book is entitled "Revolution Z", an epic zombie war novel.

Blaine Hislop is a writer from Canada who loves zombies, vampires and, basically, telling a good story. His other zombie novel is a post-apocalyptic thriller, "Deadlands: The Last Stand." It is a novelization of a story by Gary Ugarek that features a desperate, tightly-knit group of people brought together in a world populated by ravenous zombies, madmen with guns and no conscience, doomsday weapons, and creeping terror. Each day, the survivors wake up not knowing what fresh horrors await or which one of them will be next. It is, above all else, an account of family and of survival in a maddened world where death and destruction can come at any time.

Also, as a lover of the world of Stephenie Meyers, he wrote "The Cullens". It's a story that focuses on the relatives of The Cullens and features dynamic characters and a growing love story between William Cullen, a handsome, young vampire, and Samantha Carlton...a Werewolf. It's a serious and respectful parody about a great series. I'm a huge fan and I want to play in that great world and pay tribute to it. I hope you will take the time to check out "The Cullens" and support this growing series. His latest book, "Revolution Z", was co-written with author GB Banks.

I hope you all enjoyed this little promo stop!

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Book Formatting Made Easy

Happy Tuesday, good people of the blogosphere! Today, I'm talking about book formatting. You know, that niggling little thing we all have to do before we can put our books up for sale to the masses. First, you have to format it for print! Then, you have to format it for digital. If you're on more than one platform, you have to format your digital version more than once. Sounds fun, huh?

No?

Well, allow me to introduce you to something that will save you a ton of formatting time. While you won't get the level of interior design you can achieve with a professional designer at your side (bleed, images that relate to your story, etc...), you can still have a professional looking book with less work on your end. If you're on a budget (as all Indies I know are), this is the answer to your fervent prayers.

I suggest using the service I'm about to tell you all about in The Indie Author's Guide to: Building a Great Book. That publication goes into where you can sell your book, how to format for each platform, and gives a ton of references you can use to make your book the best publication it can be.

BUT!

Come on, you knew that was coming. *grin*

If you've read TIAG, you'll know my referral was for the print version of your book only. Now, you can get templates for both the print and digital versions of your book.

It's genius (and I've said as much to the brains behind the project).

I know you're chomping at the bit to find out where you can get these templates. Well, here's your link:

Book Design Templates

Their templates include:

• 2 Way (these are the ones that work for digital and print) for Fiction, Memoirs, and Narrative Non-Fiction
• Fiction, Memoirs, and Narrative Non-Fiction (print only)
• Non-Fiction, Reference, and Technical (print only)
• Children's Books (yes, really! print only)
• Specialty - Book Proposals and even a template for a mini version of your book!

Who are the masterminds behind this awesome breakthrough? Joel Friedlander and Tracy Atkins from The Book Designer blog. If you've never heard of that blog, I invite you to jump on over and poke around. You'll find a lot of great stuff over there about self-publishing and book design.

What are you waiting for? Get going!

I'm in no way compensated for any links I provide on my blog (except those that go to my own books, and that's only if you buy one!). So you can always be sure the recommendations you get here are 100% for you.

What do you think of this awesome breakthrough? Will you use it?

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Contract Considerations

Happy Tuesday, good people of the blogosphere! Well, the kids are back in school and not a moment too soon. While I enjoy having the little nose-miners at home, it's not productive to have them pulling at my skirts while I'm trying to work. I've been busier than a one-armed paper-hanger! Anywho, today we're gonna talk about contracts! I know you're all super excited about that. I'll tell you what to expect, what to avoid, and what you should be looking for. Grab those pens and notebooks and let's get going!


Yesterday, I talked about finding a good editor and what you should be looking for when you vet them. If you missed that post, take a look at it here. Tomorrow, we'll talk a little about the different kinds of editors. But, for today, let's discuss the contract. This applies to proofreading, editing, and any other service you have done by an outside source (book design, cover design, etc...).

What you should expect:

• A contract outlining exactly what your editor will do for you.
• Dates things are due back to you.
• The ability to read over the contract before you're expected to sign it.
• Clauses that prevent you from defaming your editor (and your editor from defaming you).
• A very straightforward clause that releases your editor from any claim to your work.
• Something that says your editor is allowed to refuse your work at any time.
• An out clause for you that states the contract is allowed to be terminated if you choose to do so and at what point it becomes null and void.
• An informational page that details the book to be worked on.
• Something stating when payments are due and when the contract is settled.
• A clause that states you're required to display the editor's name on the copyright page (this is pretty standard).

What you should avoid:

• Anything stating the editor has claim to any part of your manuscript once work is completed.
• An editor who doesn't use a contract (this is HUGE).
• A feeling of unease. If your editor seems shady, listen to your gut.
• Anyone who doesn't answer you in a timely manner.
• Someone who changes the price on you EVER. Once you get the job quote, that's what should be on the contract.
• An editor who's known to slander other authors.
• Someone who doesn't give you a final, signed copy of your contract.

What you should be looking for:

• Someone who has lots of references and is well spoken of.
• An editor who has a backlog of books they've worked on you can check out/read.
• A person you feel you can trust once you've talked with them.
• Someone with a good knowledge of the English language (yeah, go read their blog).
• A copy of the contract as soon as your inquiry is responded to so you have time to look it over.
• Everything should be spelled out in black and white on your contract. It should include:

1. Prices (fees section)
2. Dates things are due (goes in the services section)
3. Termination details
4. A detailed list of what you're going to get for your money (services section)
5. Slander clauses that go both ways
6. A release of claim by the editor to any part of the work's copyright (ownership of work)
7. Your editor's full name and address
8. Details about the book (title, genre, word count, author, format)
9. A spelling out of all prices (watch out for editing contracts that only contain numbers - these can be changed)
10. Something that releases the editor of guarantees (sales, etc...)
11. A clause detailing how the editor won't talk about your work to any third party
12. Non-transfer clause (this is so the editor can't send the work to anyone else to be completed)
13. Something detailing how additional changes will be handled (outside what's agreed upon in this contract)

If you read your contract and it's full of legalese, be sure your editor/proofreader/designer answers all your questions in full before you sign. Don't go into anything not understanding exactly what it is you're getting (or signing).

If you find an editor who doesn't use a contract, run away. Please.

I hope this helps you all in some way.

If you have contract questions, pop them into the comments or shoot me an e-mail. I'll be happy to answer anything.

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Indie Authors! Sell More Books and Learn to Launch!

Happy Wednesday, good people of the blogosphere. Today I'm gonna be talking about a series of books I recently picked up and why you need to check them out. As you all know, I get ZERO kickbacks from any of this. Every opinion expressed is my own, and there are no affiliate links on the Jo Michaels Blog so you can always click with confidence, knowing I'm not goading you so I can make money. I gave this series a test drive during the release for I, Zombie to see if it worked and have been busy remodeling my entire book library to follow the suggestions in the guides. Now, I have my results (tested for a month) and am prepared to share my findings with you in the hopes that you see success with this method.

Bet you're anxious to know what I'm talking about, huh?

Strap in and let's get going!

Like I said above, I've worked my rear off remodeling my books since reading this series. Since the remodel, I'm doing much better. But I have eleven books on the market, and some folks will say I sold more books because I have more books available. I disagree. I think I wasn't using the right sales approach. This series of how-to guides walked me through how to use my books to sell more of my books. I'm convinced they go hand in hand.

Yes, it was a lot of work. No, it didn't happen overnight. Yes, there were times I wanted to tear out my hair and scream. But I didn't. I kept at it. As a matter of fact, I went so far as to whiteboard a strategy for updating all my books and attacked it that way.

First up, we have Bestseller Tactics: Self Publishing techniques to help you sell more books on Amazon and make more money. Advanced Author Marketing by Glyn Williams. Here's the cover and the buy links to the Kindle version:

Amazon Kindle $3.95

The book description on Amazon is long but full of good stuff. I suggest you check it out from there.

I used this one to help me reorganize my library and rebuild it from the skeleton out. Williams brings some things to light that were smack my head duhs. I thought, why didn't I see that? Well, because I'm not a numbers/marketing person primarily. Sure, I have some great marketing ideas, but I've never understood how to make (and keep) my book visible to those who may want to buy it.

Second, and the one I used when I launched I, Zombie, we have Bestseller Tactics 2: The Ultimate Book Marketing System. Advanced author marketing techniques to help you sell more kindle books on Amazon and make more money. Self Publishing by Glyn Williams. Here's the cover and buy link to the Kindle version:

Amazon Kindle $3.95

Again, the description is longish so I'll let you check it out for yourself.

I attribute I, Zombie's mad, out of the gate success to this one. It got noticed, it got reviews, it got love. It hit the paid bestseller list on launch week and hit it again during the free promotion. I was stunned. Heck, I still am.

I'll be using the tactics in this book over and over again as I write and launch more books. I have plenty of WIPs to test it on to see if it was a fluke and if my success was mostly because I wrote a niche book in a popular genre (YA and Zombies).

We shall see...


Last, is a book I haven't bought yet (but plan to). I'm not putting a recommendation on it yet, but keep your eyes open. It's Bestseller Tactics 3: Facebook for Authors - How to sell more kindle books on Amazon with an automated marketing machine by Glyn Williams. Here's the cover and buy links to the Kindle version:

Amazon Kindle $3.95

Again, I don't know how well it works, haven't tested it, haven't bought it, can't recommend it. With the way Facebook is changing their algorithms lately, I'm not sure this book isn't already outdated or if it can possibly be kept up to date without the author losing a lot of time (and his mind).

So, purchase book 3 at your own risk.

 Remember how I talked about blog tour companies last week and why you might want to steer clear of them? It was this series of books that caused me to start looking at the numbers and checking statistics on blog life, sales of books via tours, and how tour companies do their own marketing (it's to authors, not readers). Link to that post: A Look at Blog Tour Companies. Yeah, it stirred up some poo. Yeah, some people unfollowed me. Why is it that when you're honest, folks don't stop and look at what they might be able to do differently, they take it to a personal level?

To quote The Godfather: "It's not personal, it's business." Keep that in mind.

I hope you enjoyed this post and that it helps you find your own success. Publishing is a big world with a lot of hungry readers on the receiving end. May we all get our books into the hands of those that wish to read them. I'm all about the sharing.

If you'd like to grab a copy of I, Zombie, you can do that here. Yes, I do make money off that sale. But it's win-win. You get a great book to read, and I get a sale. If not, no hard feelings. You can still subscribe to or follow my blog and show your love that way. *grin*

If you've read these books, what did you think? If not and you plan to, what are you hoping to learn?

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo